Sunday, February 21, 2016

Steven
Simoncic’s play is set in the present
where a Yuppie couple move into a newly renovated house in a poor black
neighborhood in Chicago. These privileged whites are now in the hood where
crack pipes and graffiti soon desecrate their neat little yard. As if from
separate planets, they gaze at their neighbors with alarm and timid fellowship
while the African American couple next door are equally hesitant as they offer
them welcome.

Basic to the story is the
need for the black family to cling to their roots in this ramshackle old house
once owned by grandparents. Simoncic shows the poignant loss when one’s
heritage is being swept away by encroaching gentrification. There are no villains
in this story. Poverty has
its own rationale and if one day the guy next door is stealing their boxes, the
next week they’re sharing a bottle of beer.

Saturday, February 13, 2016

We are flies on the wall
in this one-man play about an elderly Jewish businessman who, having survived
the best and the worst, is faced with an ultimate challenge. Although Charles Dennis’
script leans rather heavily on exposition, the brilliant acting by Michael Laskin
soon compensates for any lack of dramatic tension. Set in New York City in the
1990’s, Altman is fighting to save his last refuge – his second-hand shop –
from being taken from him. Although fictional, Franz Altman is based on any
number of vulnerable men who had to fight for their lives against the crushing
powers labeled progress.

The conceit is an
interview with an invisible lady reporter but Laskin is quite capable of
carrying the action without that prop. Having become a media celebrity through
a 60 Minute segment, Altman is galvanized into action. This is a man who has
survived tragedies, least of all imprisonment in Auschwitz, and if you think a
greedy landlord and his attorney will rout him never fear. This may be Altman’s
last stand but how he fights that battle is both amusing and plausible.

Director Charles Haid
keeps the action moving with knocks on doors and phones ringing so the sense of
reality never lets up. Impressive seedy NYC office set and nostalgic
projections are by Yee Eun Nam; sound is by Corwin Evans, lighting by Toranj
Noroozi, while Laskin’s evocative 1990’s costume is by Jeffrey Kurland.

Friday, February 12, 2016

He’s back with his cheery
jokes, his magic tricks and his sweetly sardonic comedy, but also to share darker
stories from his life. After Broadway shows, multiple TV appearances and drama series,
Orson Bean is appearing as himself. Here is the saga of a young boy breaking
away from a terrible childhood into the magical world of stand-up comedy. He
reveals that what kept him going throughout his life now seems to him a series
of miracles.

Handsome as ever and
winsome as we knew him best we spend a delightful 90 minutes discovering who he
really is. The inner life of a comedian is often shaded with tragedy that is
only overcome by humor and optimism. That’s what this show is about and I
recommend it unreservedly to all who remember the man and laughed at his gentle
view of humanity.

Director Guillermo
Cienfuegos sets a languid but intimate mood that draws in audience members
to feel as though they are Orson’s special friends. The clever mix of humor,
magic & melancholy works admirably throughout. Also, if you sit in the
front row you might be lucky enough to be drawn into some amazing magic tricks.

At Pacific Resident
Theatre, 703 Venice Blvd. in Venice. For tickets call (310) 822-8392 or online
at http://www.pacificresidenttheatre.com.*Wry Note: In the
1960’s when I was a young Broadway actress I was briefly in a show with Orson
but, as often happens with a neophyte and a star, we never personally met.

Also reviewed in the March
issue of NOT BORN YESTERDAY. His memoir, Safe At Home, is available on Amazon.

About Me

Born in UK, started in theater as actress on Broadway then playwright/director in UK & the USA, Broadway Critic for The Hollywood Reporter in the 1980s. Artistic director at theatres in NY and Hollywood. Wrote musicals with ASCAP composer-lyricist husband, Ralph Martell, all produced in NY & California. For 10 years directed outdoor Shakespeare in Manhattan through NY Dept Cultural Affairs. Play HARRIET TUBMAN HERSELF starring Christine Dixon, now in its 9th year. Contest winner for plays in Okla, W, Virginia & Texas. Books CLASSICS 4 KIDS and SHAKESPEARE IN AN HOUR published by Shakespeare, Inc. AWARDS: National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) playwriting grant; 5 grants for children's musicals and 8 NY/DCA for Shakespeare productions. Member DGA, AEA & LA Press Club. Lectures on "The Impact of Yiddish Theatre on American Theatre." Co-founder NY Women in Film & TV. Monthly theater column in NOT BORN YESTERDAY California senior paper. Email: dramatist2006@yahoo.com